Greenes Please don't spend money on this.

Exoticalot People are voting emotionally.

KnotStronger This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Edwin The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

rmelin13 I doubt I know all of them, but the three films of street gang genre which came out in the very late 70's and very early 80's were "The Warriors"; "The Outsiders" and this one, "Defiance". Each one had it's own positive and negative points, in my opinion. I have to admit that I've watched "The Warriors" several times over the years, and I never tire of it. On the other hand, one viewing of "The Outsiders" was enough for me, it just didn't hold up. "Defiance" however is an excellent film from start to finish, and I'll be sure to watch it again and again. The film does an outstanding job of showing the essence of what it was like to exist in a then gang-ridden neighborhood in NYC. And there is story behind it, as well as good acting, a touch of a love affair, and most importantly the grittiness of people who are determined to regain what was once theirs, only to be snatched by a gang of merciless thugs. Cheers!

videorama-759-859391 John Flynn was remembered for making gritty realistic dramas, and you'll see by his impressive inventory, the projects he chose. This well made and absorbing drama is no different, and by the end, has become quite impactful movie. Out of work, merchant seaman (Jan Michael Vincent) gets dealt a really bad hand, where he has to tough it out in a derelict apartment, in the more lower class, crime ridden New York. A real scary black gang called The Souls, who get more scary as the movie progresses, run this lower part of New York, where we have tough man (Vincent) as the first to go up against these bastards, first enduring a bit of bruising for his troubles. Befriending a boy and an old man, once a prize fighter, both now squatting in the tenenment, they form a friendship, as he does with some others, real New Yorker (Aiello) and some other familiar faces, from other mob films, here all good guys. They have all had enough of The Souls s..t, where Vincent could be the one that takes them down and makes one of the great likable hero's out there. It was a great casting choice. This gang really lets you know, they're not one to be messed with, especially if you squeal about their activities, the leader, a very fearful face, one merging with that of Ice T, and Mario Van Peebles. Art Carney is great as a convenient store owner, not of the not so lucky ones. Theresa Saldana is the other great standout one, Vincent's neighbor and romantic interest. She's very good and has the most memorable, such believable performance, but There's good acting by all, and Vincent does the role justice. This is one of those well made, search out 80's movies, a heroic urban tale of will and steel defiance, where the ending, that comes accompanied with a great victorious and inspiring music score, we walk away proud. This is a movie to be proud, a defiant tale that defies, two scenes featuring some heavy impactful violence, but that goes with the territory of this film.

wca720 I think this is JMV's finest Hour and a half on film besides AIRWOLF and why this isn't out on DVD yet is beyond me. With all the crap they they do have out now, I would have thought I could find this somewhere but alas, I can't but thank god I have it on VHS when I copied it years ago for my own personal use.You have already read the storyline from the rest of the comments up there so take my word for it, this flick is worth watching if you like "Gangs tearing up the neighborhood and the good guys kick their asses in the end" movies.It's just a shame the JMV's career has since gone down the toilet.

zardoz-13 The classic western hero is a lone stranger who rides into a town terrorized by a gang of ruthless ruffians. The townspeople let these ruffians prey on them because they are either too weak or too cowardly to drive them out.Meanwhile, the hoer is in the town out of some necessity. He prefers to mind his own business and look the other way. He is "just passing through" and doesn't plan to get entangled in the woes of others. Someway or somehow, however, the townspeople's fight becomes his fight, and he must stand up to the predators.When you think of this classic western hero, movies like George Stevens' "Shane" with Alan Ladd or John Sturges' "Bad Day at Black Rock" with Spencer Tracy come to mind. Indeed, westerns classics or otherwise are not being made in the numbers that they used to appear in on the silver screen. Nevertheless, that doesn't mean the classic western hero has vanished. He is alive, well and kicking ass in John Flynn's "Defiance" with Jan-Michael Vincent. "Defiance" is one of the few decent movies—along with Michael Winner's "The Mechanic"—that Vincent made before he destroyed his life with alcohol, narcotics, and various other forms of abuse.The setting of "Defiance" is not the old West. Instead, this tale of urban terror is set in the east side slums of contemporary New York City. The hero Tom Gamble, played with good natured but stalwart gusto by Vincent neither carries a six-gun nor rides a horse.Gamble is a footloose mariner laid over in town following his six-month suspension by his union for brawling. He is "just passing through" and he is eagerly awaiting the next ship out of town. The first ship is bound for South America, but he has to learn Spanish before he can get hired onto it.Gamble rents a cheap apartment and spends his time studying Spanish and drinking beer. Before long he gang that roans the neighborhood—they call themselves 'The Souls'—take an interest in the stranger.The Souls attack a young boy that Gamble has befriended, rob a bingo game, and murder a retired boxing champ. Along the way, they manage to beat up Tom Gamble, too. But Gamble gets back on his feet and goes after these thugs.The screenplay by producer Thomas Michael Donnelly is predictable, strictly a formula driven revenge actioneer. It appears as if Donnelly culled memorable scenes from "The Magnificent Seven," "Death Wish," "Billy Jack," and "High Noon" to make up his script.Imitative though it may be, "Defiance" is definitely a superior effort. There are no car chases or shoot-outs. It is knives, fists, and Louisville sluggers. The dialogue sounds realistic and the characters are well-rounded by both Donnelly's script and a talented cast.John Flynn, who directed "Defiance," has called the shots of several minor masterpieces such as "The Sergeant" with Rod Steiger, "The Outfit" with Robert Duvall, and "Rolling Thunder" with William Devane. Flynn specializes in tough, realistic, little action epics that recall the studio-bound James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart thrillers that Warner Brothers ground out in the 1930s and 1940s. Flynn crafts his movies with both economy and imagination. "Defiance" qualified as Flynn's best film when he came out in 1980 and a sleeper, too. Flynn has a knack for creating atmospheric situations and staging exciting rough & tumble fights that put to good use in "Defiance." He builds the action to a pressure cooker climax that explodes in a rousing finale. There isn't a slack moment in this fast-paced melodrama that has it share of humorous interludes.Jan Michael Vincent delivers his finest, most mature performance. Although he clenches his jaws and knuckles his fists, he never plays Tom Gamble as a muscle-bound moron. As Gamble, he is a modest, ordinary hombre who stand up for what he believes in and rejects any phony claims to being a hero.Art Carney is featured in a small role as a Jewish storekeeper who rebels against The Souls and gets severely beaten for his defiance. Rudy Ramos nearly steals the movie as the kingpin villain who heads up The Souls.Altogether, "Defiance" is a little movie. There is nothing pretentious about it. Moreover, it is not profane, lewd, or gratuitous. The ending is happy, and the theme of the community that rejuvenates itself is inspiring without being dripping with too much sentiment.